A Dursley at Hogwarts
by elizabethhhhhhh
Summary: Lauren Dursley, an American girl originally from Britian, has her life turned upside down when she recieves her Hogwarts acceptance letter. Her father, Dudley Dursley, calls the only person he knows: Harry Potter.
1. The Beginning

Lauren Dursley lived a perfectly normal life for an 11 year old girl. Her family resided in a six bedroom house in Stoneham, Massachusetts. She had a 14 year old brother, Samuel, who spent most of his time out with friends or in his room. Her mother, Sarah Dursley, was a stay at home mom who spent most of her time gossiping with the other neighborhood moms. Her father, Dudley Dursley, was a British investor who had moved his family to America when Lauren was only two, with hopes of expanding his wealth. His plans succeeded nonetheless, and his children grew up happy and comfortably.

The kids were hardly told, "No." They spent most of their time out of the house or glued to their phones. Their parents didn't seem to mind, as long as the kids weren't bothering them or making a mess, they were happy. Lauren's daily routine involved her waking up, going to school, hanging out with friends, returning home, going to sleep, and repeating the process the next day. Everything that occurred in the house happened like clockwork. Occasionally, someone would fall out of line, but they would fall back into place eventually.

It was a chilly March Thursday when things started to change. Lauren was getting dressed that morning as she put on leggings and a sweatshirt from Pink. She slid her Ugg boots on and brushed her long blonde hair back. As she applied mascara, she heard her brother running around the house, looking for his shoes. She rolled her eyes and kept telling herself that in a few months he would be out of the house.

Samuel, or Sam, was graduating the eighth grade this year and would be attending a boarding school in London, the same one her father and grandfather had attended years before. Lauren would only be entering the sixth grade, so she didn't have to worry about boarding schools yet. And once her brother left, she'd get the second biggest room in the house along with all of her parent's attention. As she grabbed her backpack, she yelled out to her mom,

"Mom!" Her mom didn't answer the first time, so she tried again. "M-OM!" Still no response. "SARAH!" She heard her mom run out of her room.

"What's the matter?"

"Can we pick up Rachel on the way to school?"

"I suppose, but we'd better get going soon then."

Lauren grabbed her bag and hopped in her mom's BMW. Her brother always opted to take the bus with his friends, while Lauren preferred to get driven to school because then she didn't have to worry about having to sit with anyone weird.

Her mother drove out of their neighborhood and into a nearby development where her friend lived. They rolled into the driveway and her mom honked the horn twice. Her friend, Rachel, ran out of her garage and hopped into the backseat.

"Thanks for the ride Mrs. Dursley," she said, catching her breath.

"Anytime," smiles her mother. If you lived in the Dursley house, you would've known that Sarah Dursley absolutely hated having to drive other kids around. And she especially hated having to drive them in the morning. There were a lot of things Sarah Dursley hated, but you would've never guessed it. The minute she stepped into the presence of anyone who wasn't in their family, she turned into one of the warmest and kindest women you'd ever met. During the car ride, Lauren copied Rachel's homework. Her mom pulled up to the school and waved them out of the car.

"Rachel, Summer, and Lindsey are coming over after school today so make sure you pick us up," instructed Lauren.

"Ok sweetheart," smiled Mrs. Dursley as she drove the car out of the school parking lot.

Lauren's day went as always. At the end of the day, a group of kids were gathered around her as she packed up. The herd was all talking to each other, spreading gossip and sharing rumors they had heard. It would be a flat out lie to say that Lauren didn't talk with them. She made fun of several of the kids in her class. And everyone who was scared of being made fun of by her laughed along. As she left school, her three closest friends walked around her. They giggled as they talked about who knows what. Mrs. Dursley's car was waiting in the parking lot of the school. The girls piled in.

"Can you take us for food first?" asked Summer.

"Sure thing," said Mrs. Dursley as she drove the girls to the nearest Panera. The girls decided to go shopping afterwards instead of going home with Lauren. Mrs. Dursley dropped them off at their houses and eventually returned home with her daughter.

"I'm going to go see Mrs. Blanke two doors down. Tell your brother to order take out, alright?" she said.

"Kk," responded Lauren. She walked up the spiral staircase and banged on her brother's door. She didn't wait for him to open it before yelling, "Mom wants you to order dinner!" and walking away.

She carried three bags full of new clothes for her already stuffed closet and a half empty cup of Starbucks into her room. She threw the bags on the ground, placed the Starbucks cup on her table, and laid in her bed to charge her phone. She was scrolling through Instagram when suddenly there was a knock at her window. She sat up, trying to see what is was, but there was nothing there. She heard it again, but it was different this time. She looked up and saw an owl flying over her in her bedroom. She shrieked, and it dropped a letter into her lap. Her brother sprinted into her room and immediately saw the owl flying around, trying to get out.

"What the hell!" he yelled. "Where'd you get that thing?"

"I don't know! It flew in here somehow!" Just then, they heard the garage door open downstairs

"DAD!" they yelled in unison. The owl continued to fly around, banging into walls. Lauren began to cry when it knocked down her tapestry. Their father ran up the stairs and found his kids pressed up against the outside of the door.

"What in the world is going on here!" he exclaimed.

"There's an owl inside my room! An owl!" cried Lauren.

"Nonsense," he pushed his way through the kid and opened the door. He saw the owl flapping around and he ran for the window. He pushed it opened and yelled, "Out! Out!" The owl, which was surprisingly obedient, listened and flew out. "It's safe kids, you can come back in. How did it even get here, these windows are unbreakable!"

"I swear, I was just sitting on my bed and it flew right in even though the window was closed! And then it dropped some envelopes onto my bed and began to-" her father's face turned pale white. He grabbed the envelope, took one look at it, and ran out of the room and into his own room before letting his daughter finish explaining. He locked the door behind him, but that didn't stop the kids from trying to listen in through the cracks.

They heard him dialing a number in a frenzy. They heard the faint ringing sound coming from the phone. Who in the world was he calling? Eventually the ringing sound stopped.

"Potter!" they heard their father yell. They heard little fragments of the call, but most words were drowned out by the sounds of their father stomping. "...a letter...a wax stamp...what do I do... alright..." Eventually the call went silent, but their dad didn't leave the room. Lauren turned to Sam.

"Who's Potter?" she asked.

"I haven't got a clue. Come on, let's order Chinese for dinner." Sam ordered their food and Mrs. Dursley showed up only a few minutes later.

"Where's your father?" she asked. "I saw his car parked in the driveway." The two kids remained silent. Their mother scoffed and headed upstairs. Sam went to put the menu back in the cabinet where they found it, and he noticed a large stack of Christmas cards from a few months prior. There was one that seemed odd to him and that stuck out of the pile. He pulled it out, and looked at it. He jumped back at the realization that the picture on the card was moving. It featured a dark haired man, a ginger haired woman, two sons, and a little girl all smiling and waving at the camera.

"Lauren, look at this!" His sister rushed over and was almost as surprised as he was. They examined the card and flipped it over to see who sent it.

Happy Christmas! 

Much Love,

Harry, Ginny, James, 

Albus, And Lily Potter

He looked at his sister, scared. They turned the card back over and realized who the people in the picture were.

"I remember him!" said Lauren, pointing to the younger son.

"And I remember that one!" added Sam, pointing to the older son.

"Didn't they come for Easter a couple years ago?"

"I thought it was for Christmas."

"I think they're from dads family. In England." They heard their mother rushing down the stairs with their father, and they quickly hid the card.

"Any minute now.." they heard their father muttering. Their mother was shaking as she stood, waiting in front of the door. Lauren glanced at her phone. It was 8:46 PM. Who in the world was coming at 8:46 PM? Suddenly, they heard a thump come from the kitchen. Mr. Dursley ran in, and everyone followed. There, in the middle of the kitchen, stood the same man they had seen in the earlier photos. With black hair, glasses, he wore long black pants, an emerald green turtle neck, and a black cape. There was the lightest bit of dirt on his forehead too.

"Harry," said Lauren's father, with a scared, yet relieved sound in his voice.

"Hello there Big D," smiled the man. "Now, shall we get down to business?" He walked into the formal living room, and the Dursley's all followed. He sat down and looked at Lauren, "You're a witch, Lauren Dursley."


	2. The First Goodbyes

Lauren, not knowing how to respond, responded like any other 11 year old would've. She laughed and looked at her brother, who was laughing too. Their parents however, still held straight faces. Eventually, she realized that maybe this wasn't a joke.

"Well?" she asked, looking at Harry as if expecting him to say more.

"Well, you're a wizard. And the letter you got," he grabbed it from Dudley's hands and gave it to Lauren, "that's your acceptance letter. To Hogwarts."

"Hogwarts?"

"It's a school where wizards and witches travel to and learn all about magic."

"Where is it?"

"Northern Scotland, but you'll live there so you won't have to worry about traveling that much."

"Live there? How would I even get there in the first place? And how do you even know I'm a witch? Witches fly brooms and wear pointy hats and I would never do either of those things."

"Well, you get there by taking a train. And just because you don't think you're a witch doesn't mean that you aren't. Think about it. Has anything strange ever happened to you that you couldn't explain?"

"Well, I mean, there was the one time we were on a cruise in the Mediterranean Sea. It was quite a lovely cruise, they had a restaurant on the sec-"

"No need to give the details, just tell me what happened."

"Well, I was trying to take a picture of the dolphins a few feet out from us and I dropped my phone into the ocean. And I was about to cry because we wouldn't be able to get a replacement until we got back to land, which wasn't for another 4 hours. But then, out of nowhere, my phone flew out of the water and back on the deck somehow. And it wasn't even damaged or wet. It was like I never let it out of my hands."

"See, it's little occurrences like that that make me know you're a witch."

"Well still, I don't want to go live at a magic school on the other side of the world. I'm not going to boarding school until I'm in high school, maybe then I'll go."

"Lauren, listen to me. You only get one chance to go to Hogwarts, you'll never be able to attend again if you don't go now. I almost decided against going there too. But, I went and it was by far the best decision of my life. You'll make new friends, learn all sorts of things, and-"

"No! I'm not going! I'm not leaving!"

"Lauren," Mr. Dursley began.

"I don't want to go to that stupid school! I don't-"

"LAUREN!" he yelled. Lauren shut her mouth quickly, it was the first time she'd ever been yelled at. "Listen to your uncle!"

"How about this? You can finish up the school year here. Then over the summer, you can come stay with your Aunt Ginny and I. Our son Albus and his cousin Rose are both in your year, so you'll be able to make plenty of friends. You can experience the wizarding world for a few months. And I promise there's a lot more to it then just broomsticks and pointy hats. And at the end of the summer, if you decide that the wizarding world isn't for you, you can come back here and continue your muggle studies," said Albus.

"Muggle?" The term puzzled Lauren.

"That's what we call someone without magic."

"Oh. So am I a muggle?"

"No, but the rest of your family is. Now, do we have a deal?"

"Fine. But you can't make me go if I don't like it."

"I'm certain you will," laughed Harry.

"Don't get your hopes up," replied Lauren as she rolled her eyes. Dudley and Harry began to discuss the costs of sending Lauren to Hogwarts until the conversation turned into talking about the rest of their family back in England. Lauren, realizing it was almost 10, made her way to bed. She ran downstairs to ask her mother where her red velvet scrunchie was, and saw Harry leaving. But he wasn't leaving out the door, it was like he disappeared into thin air.

"W-w-where'd he GO!" she asked, horrified. The moving pictures were strange enough, but now the man was turning invisible.

"It's called apparition, apparantion, something like that," grunted her father.

"So- So he really is magical?"

"What'd you think, we were just making this up?"

"W-Well, yeah. I-I-"

"Just promise me one thing: don't go telling any of your little friends that you're a witch. Just tell them that your parents are sending you off to boarding school, simple as that."

"Alright," replied Lauren. She was still shaking as she walked up the stairs. She tried to sleep that night, but couldn't. She decided to go to her brother for advice. She knocked on his door once before letting herself in as always.

"What do _you _want?" he asked.

"I-I just wanted to know what you're thinking. After all that..."

"I'm to tired to think. Go to bed."

Lauren walked to her room and later on her bed for another hour. She watched YouTube videos to pass the time, until she eventually fell asleep.

The next morning she got up. Her family's morning routine was off today. Her brother was already downstairs, dressed and ready to go, by the time she was getting just starting to get ready. She was scared of having to sit in a car with her mother for fifteen minutes, she didn't want to be forced to discuss the previous night's events. She pulled out her phone and sent a text to her group chat.

_My mom can't drive me today and I don't wanna take the bus. Can anyone give me a ride? Also I have something important to tell you guys today. _

She was only a few seconds into straightening her hair when her phone buzzed. It was a response from Rachel.

_I can take you, be ready at 8:)_

Lauren breathes a sigh of relief. She had 45 minutes left to get ready, which made her wonder why her brother was already downstairs and ready. She brushed her hair into a long, high ponytail. She never found her red velvet scrunchie, so she had to use her maroon velvet one. Usually she'd make her mom buy her another one the night before, but she was trying to avoid any contact with her parents.

She put on a pair of ripped jeans and a cropped grey sweater from Hollister. She slid her white Vans on, finished her makeup, and went downstairs to grab breakfast before Rachel's mom arrived.

She went to the kitchen and grabbed a smoothie drink from the fridge and a cinnamon muffin. She took two bites of the muffin before abandoning it on the table. She looked at her brother, who was oddly quiet.

"Shouldn't you be on the bus by now?" she asked.

"Mom's driving me today," he said.

"Oh, Rachel's mom is giving me a ride." He said nothing in response. Sensing the tension, Lauren headed outside into the driveway and Rachel's mom pulled up a few minutes later. Lauren hopped in the backseat, and Rachel handed her her homework and Lauren began copying it quickly.

"What's the big news?" asked Rachel.

"I'll tell you when we get to school. I don't wanna have to repeat it for everyone." Lauren was usually a girl who could blab on for hours about nearly anything. But today, it was like she was mute. She and Rachel got of the car and walked into the school. Lindsey and Summer were waiting for the two of them at the front door.

"So, what's the news?" bugged Lindsey.

"Not now, wait until we get into the classroom."

When the girls had returned from their lockers, they all sat in homeroom and waited for the bell to ring. Other students gathered around her, it was obvious that she was about to tell them something huge.

"Well we're in class now, what's the big news?"

"My parents are sending me to boarding school next year. In Scotland." Her friends gasped.

"But you'll still be here for the summer though, right?"

"Nope. I'm leaving in June, so I won't even get to spend summer here."

"That's-That's horrible!"

"I know. I'm gonna cry when I leave. I really don't want to go. It's probably gonna be filled with a bunch of weird English kids who drink tea and curtsy."

"I'm gonna miss you a lot Dursley," said one boy, Logan DeMitri. Lauren had had her eyes on him since the day she first met him in kindergarten. But they never really seemed to develop any kind of relationship. It didn't matter much though, it was only fifth grade after all.

"I'll probably be back for winter and spring break though. And next summer break too, so I won't be gone for to long."

"You can't leave though! Middle school won't be the same without you!"

"Don't worry yet, I still have three months before I go. We have plenty of time left to hang out."

The three months, however, went by rather quickly. Before they knew it, it was Lauren's last day in Stoneham. The girls and their classmates crossed the stage and accepted their 5th grade diplomas. It was a useless ceremony, but still fun nonetheless. Afterwards, several families went to the Dursley house for a celebratory cookout. Lauren took her friends up to her room, and they were surprised to see how bland it looked.

Her room had always been beautifully decorated, and made all three of them wish they could have it. However, everything from her tapestry to her fairy lights were packed up in boxes. Rachel began to cry,

"Oh Lauren you can't leave me! You've been my best friend forever. What am I gonna do without you?" she hugged Lauren tightly, and soon the other two girls joined in until everyone was crying. They heard Mrs. Dursley yell out to everyone that dinner was being served, and the girls made their way down. As they walked through the kitchen, she overhead her parents talking with Logan DeMitri's parents.

"We couldn't be more proud of our little girl. It is, after all, one of the finest private schools in Europe."

After eating dinner, Lauren and her friends joined a group of their classmates outside in the backyard.

"Packing for boarding school?" they teased her.

"Sadly," she replied.

"Don't be blue Dursley! We still have 3 hours left until the parties over!" laughed Logan.

"You all better FaceTime me every night and update me on everything happening," she told the boys.

"Of course. And you have to tell us everything happening at your school. Deal?" he asked, holding out his hand.

"Deal," she laughed as she went to shake it. But he grabbed her hand and pulled her into a hug. She started to cry, and the rest of her class mates joined on the hug.

"Kids!" yelled Mrs Dursley. "It's time for dessert!"

"We're coming," Lauren yelled back. The kids filled their plates with different sweets and sat down in the gazebo.

The kids spent the next 2 hours laughing and watching the fireworks go off. They all took pictures together for Instagram and one by one, everyone left until it was just Logan and Lauren. His parents were inside, still talking with the Dursleys. Lauren had tears streaming down her face as she said goodbye to all of her friends.

"Why're you so sad? It's not _really _goodbye now is it?" reassured Logan. "We'll all be waiting for you to come back for Christmas and then you can tell us all about your boarding school and everyone there. You better not replace us all though!"

"I could never," laughed Lauren. "I'll never find a better group of friends then the people here." Just like that, something clicked. Lauren went from not just liking Logan, but like-liking him.

"Logan, c'mon! It's time to go!" yelled his mom as parents started to get into the car. Lauren reached out and hugged him before waving goodbye. If she wasn't also worrying about leaving the next day, she would've been the happiest girl on Earth.

She woke up the next morning, her father and Harry sitting in the kitchen, enjoying breakfast. Lauren lugged her trunks and boxes downstairs with her. Her brother sat in his room, playing some stupid video game. It suddenly hit her that she had barely said a word to him since the last time Harry was at the house. She knocked on his door, then let herself in.

"I'm busy," he said.

"You can afford to lose one game," she replied as she unplugged the TV.

"What'd you do that for!"

"I'm leaving now and I wanted to say goodbye. An actual goodbye."

"Well goodbye then. Are you happy?"

"No, Sam, I'm not. We've spent the last three months completely avoiding each other and I don't know why."

"Why does it matter? You're off to your fancy school and I'm off to mine."

"I just don't understand why you won't-"

"Why I won't what? Talk to you? Oh I don't know, maybe it's because I worked my ass off to get into this school just to make sure I lived up to dad's standards for the perfect son. You did nothing, and still managed to get accepted into some fancy magic school. And now it's all they talk about! I didn't get a graduation party, but you sure did. Nobody bragged about me to the neighbors, but they sure bragged about you. I'm not getting a trip to England for the summer, but you sure are!"

"Sam, I-"

"Don't even bother. You're leaving now anyway. It's best to leave it at that."

She ran out of the room and into the kitchen, trying to stop herself from crying.

"Ready to go?" asked Harry. She nodded her head silently and her parents came over to give their last goodbyes.

"Make sure you call us every night and tell us how your day went!"

"We'll see you in a few months!"

"We're only a few thousand miles away!"

Harry shrunk the boxes and trunk to the point that they could fit in the palm of his hand. He grabbed them in his right hand, and reached his left hand out for Lauren to grab. She gripped it and suddenly felt her stomach push inwards. But in the blink of an eye, she was standing in the foyer of someone's house. Her legs were numb and her head ached. She saw all of her luggage next to her, already returned to it's normal size.

"I have to go to work now. The kids will be back from school in two hours, so don't worry. And feel free to wander around the house while you wait."

She walked around the house. It wasn't very big, at least compared to what she was used to. They barely had any electronics, just a beaten up old landline. The lights turned on for her in every room that she walked in. The house seemed still, but she felt weird walking around it. There was a strange energy there that she hadn't felt before. Creeped out, she laid down on the couch. She pulled out her AirPods and opened up Netflix. But, there was no data. Thankfully, she still had several songs downloaded on her phone that she could listen to.

Her happiness didn't last long though, as every song brought her back to another memory from home. She began to cry just thinking about how she missed her old life. Now, she was stuck here with her weird cousins in their weird house with no way of contacting anyone. She stared at the wall, telling herself that she would be able to go home soon. She just had to wait a little bit.


	3. A First Look at the Wizarding World

She was halfway through listening to a song when she heard the door open. Four pairs of footsteps raced inside.

"Do you think she's here yet?" asked a little girl's voice.

"Obviously, all of her luggage is sitting right here," said a boy. Lauren stood up and walked to the foyer.

"Hello?" she asked. There was a tall ginger mother, a daughter who looked like a smaller version of her mom, and two dark haired boys who looked to be around your age.

"Lauren," smiled the mom, "you made it! I'm Ginny, your aunt. I don't think we've met before." She pointed to the daughter, "This is Lily, The two of you will share a room while you stay with us." She turned her attention to the shorter of the two boys. "This is Albus, he'll be a first year at Hogwarts this year too." Then, she pointed to the oldest child. "And this is James. He'll be a second year." The kids all waved to her, but she returned it with an obviously fake smile. They two younger ones wore ugly school uniforms, while James was in casual clothes. The mother continued, "I'm so sorry I wasn't here earlier. I had to take James to a doctor's appointment and pick the other two up from school."

"It's fine, I don't really mind being home alone," replied Lauren.

"Don't get used to a quiet house," teased James. "Now that summer's here, this place is gonna be hectic for the next three months."

"I can't wait," said Lauren sarcastically.

"Do you want to go unpack?" asked Lily.

"Sure, I guess." Lauren follows her upstairs and carried each of her boxes and trunks up, one by one. The room was originally an attic, but it still had plenty of sunlight and room for the two of them. "I probably won't unpack much since I'll be leaving soon anyway," explained Lauren.

"But you just got here!"

"Your dad and I made a deal. If I decide I don't like the wizarding world, I can go back home."

"But you haven't even seen it yet!"

"It doesn't matter, I already know I'm going to hate it. I don't belong here. I belong in America with my _normal _friends and family. Once I tell him I don't like it, I'll be able to go back home and continue my _normal_ life."

Lily looked heartbroken. She had clearly been excited about having another girl in the house. They heard a thump downstairs and Lily headed out the door.

"My dad's home from work, if you want to say hi," she said, before walking out with a frown on her face. Lily laid down on her bed and continued to listen to music. She ignored the family when they came upstairs to tell her dinner was ready. She laid there for hours, crying. Eventually everyone in the house was asleep. Since her original time zone was five hours back however, she was still awake. She decided to go for a walk now that everyone was out of the way.

When she walked into the kitchen, she saw a plate still sitting at the dinner table, untouched. She was starving and couldn't help herself. The food was surprisingly still warm even though it had to have been sitting out for hours. Next to it, there was a note.

Hi Lauren,

I'm taking the kids out tomorrow morning. 

We're going to go shopping for school

supplies and I would love it if you would 

join us. Don't worry about sleeping in, 

we won't leave until you're ready to go. 

Lots of love, 

Aunt Ginny

Lauren felt a sudden sense of guilt. They really were trying their hardest to make her feel at home, and she kept brushing them off. She decided she was going to go with them tomorrow. Maybe her phone could finally get a connection in town. She finished up what was left of her dinner and went back upstairs.

She woke up at the same time as everyone else that morning. It was hard to sleep when there were five other people running around the house. She did her hair into two French braids and put on a jean skirt, tank top, and light bomber jacket. She was dissapointed that the weather wasn't as warm yet as it was in America. She was trying to decide on which vans to wear when Lily walked in.

"Which of these matches my outfit better?" she asked her, holding up a pair of white vans and a pair of rose checkerboard ones.

"The pink ones. But I wouldn't wear that outfit if I were you, people will stare."

"What do you mean? It's street fashion."

"Not where we're going it isn't."

"Where exactly are we going?"

"Diagon Alley. The biggest wizard shopping center."

"What am I supposed to wear? I've never been there before." Lily ran to her closet before pulling out a sapphire blue cloak.

"This never fit me, but it will probably work for you. Just wear a plain sweater and some black pants underneath and you'll be fine."

Lauren changed into a white turtle neck sweater from Forever 21. It wasn't something she wore often, but it worked with the cloak. She matched the outfit with a pair of leggings and her white vans before following Lily downstairs.

"We're ready!" shouted Lily.

"Come here girls, we'll leave once James finds the money grandma gave him," said Ginny, who was kissing her husband goodbye before he apparated to work. "Lily, have you explained Floo Powder to her yet?" Lily shook her head. She looked at at Lauren. "Right then, it's fairly simple. You and I will go together. All we have to do is hold a handful of powder, throw it on the ground, yell out, 'Diagon Alley!' and then we'll be there." Lauren looked at her like she had three heads.

"What exactly is Diagon Alley?" she asked.

"Oh, you see, it's-it's like a shopping center. But only for wizards. And while we're there you can buy your uniforms and school supplies and wand and-"

"Uniforms!"

"Yes, but don't worry, they're very comfy." Lauren groaned. "And after we're done shopping, we're going to go to dinner with my brothers and their kids." Just then, James ran into the living room.

"Found it!" he yelled, holding up a small pouch.

"Alright then, James you go first. Then Albus, then Ginny, and then Lauren and I will go last." James stepped into the fire place, grabbed some powder from a small jar, threw it on the ground and yelled,

"Diagon Alley!" Just like that, large green flames sprung up around him. When they had died out, only five seconds later, James was gone. Lauren jumped back.

"W-w-where did he go?!"

"To Diagon Alley of course," said Ginny. "Don't worry, you can't even feel the flames." Albus and Lily did the same and Lauren reluctantly stepped into the fireplace with Ginny. She held her hand right before Ginnny yelled loud and clear,

"Diagon Alley!" There was a flash of green light, and suddenly they were in a large building. They stepped out and into a large hallway with dozens of other fireplaces that people were coming out of. The three kids stood at the end of the building, and Lauren followed Ginny to them.

"Where to first?" asked their mother.

"Can we _please _get my wand?" begged Albus.

"No way! I want to go buy a broomstick, I've been saving up for it for two years now!" yelled James.

"We'll take Lauren and Albus for their wands, and then we can go look at broomsticks," assured Ginny. James moaned, but followed the rest of the family out of the big building and into the street. Lauren looked at all the stores and people, astonished. Judging by what everyone else was wearing, she was glad Lily let her borrow a cloak. They walked through the busy road and all the way down to a little old shop called Ollivanders.

They stepped in, and a little old man sat at the front counter, picking away at a piece of wood. He looked up at them and smiled,

"Well if it isn't the Potters? Here to get another wand I presume?"

"Two actually," piped up James. "One for my brother and our cousin, Lauren. She's muggle born, but just got her letter a few months ago."

"Well, that's fantastic! Welcome to Diagon Alley! Do you like it so far?"

"I guess so. It's just very different," replied Lauren. The man looked dissapointed in her answer.

"Well yes, it'll probably be a hard adjustment. Anywho, who's up first?" Albus stepped backward, motioning for Lauren to go. "Ok then, I'll be right back." The man disappeared behind the counters and into a back room. He brought out 9 small, thin boxes. He opened each one up to reveal a different wand. She tried 6 in total. 3 did nothing, 1 made a beer bottle sitting on the table shatter, another made a couple little sparks, and one created a golden ray of sunlight.

"Ah, looks like we've found your match," smiled the man. "11 inches, alder wood, a unicorn hair, and very flexible."

"Is that good?" she asked.

"Good for you, not so much for others. Now, Albus, step up and let's find you a wand!"

It took Albus much longer then it did Lauren. He had to have gone through at least 30 wands before finally getting one that didn't make something explode. He found one that produced a few small orbs of light whenever he waved it.

"Interesting... 12 3/4 inches, red oak, a Phoenix feather, and slightly flexible. Is that all, Ginny?"

"Yes, thank you Ollivander," smiled Ginny.

"It will be 6 galleons for the girl and 33 for the boy." Lauren pulled out the credit card her dad had given her, but Ginny told her not to worry about paying for any of it. Besides, that money wouldn't work in the wizarding world.

The family walked to a broomstick shop, and James picked out a Comet 290. Lauren looked at the broomsticks curiously, did these people actually fly on them? Next they went to Madam Malkin's, which appeared to be a clothing shop. Lauren, James, and Albus were led to the back while the workers there measured them.

"Did Lily give ya that cloak?" asked James.

"Uh, yeah, she let me borrow it this morning," replied Lauren.

"I'm pretty sure our Aunt Fleur gave that to her for Christmas last year. She never gets anyone's sizes right though. Albus and I's clothes from her are always to small, and Lily's are too big." Lauren gave him an awkward smile. Trying to break the silence, James continued. "Did you have any aunts or uncles in America?"

"My mom had a stepsister, but I've never met her. I'm pretty sure she left their family once she turned 18 and they haven't talked since. My dad had an aunt who lived with us though, my Great-Aunt Marge. But she was only with us for seven months. My dad got tired of her constantly yelling so he sent her to an old person home. She never gave us gifts, all we ever got from her were stale dog treats."

"We?"

"Yeah, my brother and I."

"_Oh, _I think I remember him. We came to your house and he wouldn't let me touch his television toy."

"You mean his video game?"

"Is that what it's called? I guess it was his video game then."

"Don't get offended, he never lets me touch his stuff either."

"Alright kids," said one of the measuring women "Here's your robes, have a great year!" Lauren readjusted her cloak around her neck and took the three boxes one of the women was handing to her.

The three of them met up with Ginny and Lily who were looking at different clothes in the front of the store. Ginny paid for the robes and a few things that Lily picked out.

The group then went to buy school equipment, like cauldrons and telescopes. Then they stopped at a book store and Lauren bought the 8 books she needed. Before they made their final stop, Lauren noticed a small machine by the book store.

"Do you want to stop there?" asked Ginny, noticing Lauren's attention to it.

"What exactly is it?"

"It turns muggle money into wizard money."

"Will it work with an American card?"

"I don't know exactly, but it wouldn't hurt to try." Lauren walked up to the machine. She had used an ATM several times before, and realized that this wasn't to different from that. She inserted her card in the slot, pressed the buttons as usual, and withdrew $2000. _This should last me until December, _she thought. The machine rumbled, before spitting out a large velvet bag which looked like it contained hundreds of coins. It was roughly the size of a 1/2 gallon jug of milk. It was fairly heavy, but she managed to carry it over to the Potter family who were waiting across the street. The kids looked shocked and Ginny looked frightened.

"Are you sure your father was ok with letting you take all that money?" asked Ginny.

"He doesn't care. It's just money. If he really wants more then he can just work more and get some. But he already has plenty so it doesn't matter."

"Ok then... shall we go look at the emporium?"

"Yes!" cried Lily and James. The family walked over to what looked like a pet store. Except the only things they sold were owls, toads, and cats. Lauren walked over to wear the cats were, but James stopped her.

"A cat ain't gonna do ya no good. It's an owl that ya want," he said, pointing to all the cages lined against the wall. "Everyone uses them to send letters to each other in our world." The two of them walked over to the owls, which Lily and Albus were already admiring.

"Do you have an owl?" Lauren asked.

"Yeah, but I have to share it with Albus this year." Lauren saw a slight frown grow Albus's face. She wanted to say something, but she hadn't talked to him at all yet. She instead went back to looking st the owls, when she spotted one on the very end of the second shelf from the top. It was white, with a few light brown feathers scattered throughout it. It had large yellow eyes and a round face. She asked a worker nearby to grab the cage for her since it was to high.

"This one'll run ya quite a lot," laughed the employee. Lauren pulled out her velvet bag and searched through it.

"How much will it be?" she asked. The worker looked astonished at how much money the young girl had.

"Er- 51 galleons, 16 sickles, and 18 knuts," he replied as he handed her the cage.

"Thank you!" James helped her count out the coins since she didn't know how to count wizard money yet.

She brought the owl in its cage up to the front counter and handed the lady her money. The woman smiled as she rang up the cash register.

"What are ya gonna name her?" she asked.

"Uhm," Lauren thought, "Charli, short for Charlotte."

"Lovely," smiled the woman as she handed her the cage. "Have a nice day!"

Lauren walked over to Ginny and Lily, who were feeding treats to some of the animals.

"Is that yours?" asked Lily.

"Yeah, I just bought it. Isn't it adorable?"

"So you'll be writing to us from Hogwarts then?" smiled Ginny.

"Definitely!" squealed Lauren.

"So you'll be going to Hogwarts?" asked Lily.

"I think so!"

"I'm so glad to hear that Lauren," smiled Ginny. "I knew you would like it here. Now, once I get James and Albus away from that firebreathing toad, we can go visit Uncle Ron and Uncle George at the shop, and meet everyone else for dinner."

Ginny walked away from the two girls. Lily said goodbye to all of the animals she had been playing with, while Lauren looked around. She was starting to actually like this place a little bit.


	4. Meeting the Weasleys

When Ginny returned with the two boys and managed to pull Lily away from all the owls, the family left the shop. They walked down the road and reached the biggest shop on the street. It was colorful and loud music was blasting from it. It featured a large cartoon man lifting his hate to reveal a rabbit in his head on the outside wall. They walked inside the shop, which was busier then all the other stores. James, Albus, and Lily immediately ran from their mother the minute they walked through the door. It was clear that they had been here before and knew exactly where they wanted to go.

"Is this a toy store?" asked Lauren.

"Yes, but it's also a candy and joke store, my brothers own it," replied Ginny. Just then, two men with red hair walked out from behind a wall.

"Ginny!" they laughed as they hugged her.

"Is Harry here?" asked one.

"Not yet, but he'll be here in time for dinner."

"Fantastic!" The other man looked at Lauren,

"And who's this?"

"This is Lauren Dursley, she's Harry's cousin's daughter. She got her letter a few months ago, so she's living with us for the summer to get a better sense of the wizarding world."

"Well Lauren, it's a pleasure to meet ya!" smiled the man, holding out his hand. "I'm George, and this is Ron." Lauren shook their hands and gave her usual uncomfortable smile as she stood their awkwardly. She noticed that the man was missing an ear, but she didn't dare ask why. "How about a tour of the shop?"

"Sure," she said. She wasn't really into toys anymore, so she didn't expect to find much interesting in the shop. But, she was surprised by everything there was.

"And here we have love potions, yes they do work! And here is the acid pops, but be careful, they'll burn a hole in your tongue. And oh! Speaking of tongues!" he picked up what looked like a caramel square. "I'm pretty sure we used this on your father once. It turned his tongue 4 feet long if I remember correctly..."

"Really? What did he do?"

"Aye, I think he just jumped around and screamed for a bit until my dad managed to get him to sit still and used a spell to turn it back to normal. We got in a ton of trouble for that one, we almost weren't allowed to go to the cup."

"The cup?"

"The Quidditch World Cup. It's a huge sporting event, not many folks get to go. Thankfully Fred managed to talk our mum into letting us go."

"Who was Fred, was he another one of your brothers?" George suddenly turned silent.

"Have you spotted anything that's caught your eye?"

"Uhh, maybe the glow in the dark gum?"

"Good choice, what flavor do you want?"

"Watermelon sounds good. How much is it?"

"14 sickles, but you don't need to worry about it."

"No, it's fine," she said as she pulled out her velvet sack. "Which one is a sickle again?"

"Uh, it's the silver one," he said, surprised that a muggle born child had all this money. She counted out 14 and gave them to him.

"Thank you!" she smiled.

"No problem, uhm, the other kids are all upstairs, did you want to join them?"

"Sure." George led her up two flights of stairs and into a back room that looked like it was probably a closet. But he opened it to reveal a large room filled with toys and several red headed kids running around. She spotted James, Albus, and Lily among them.

"Kids!" yelled George as the room fell silent. "We're leaving in 20 minutes, so make sure your ready. We're taking a portkey since there's so many of us, so you _need _to be downstairs in time. Understand?"

"Yes," groaned the kids, who didn't want to leave.

"Alright then, and this is Lauren by the way. She's staying with the Potters for the summer, and she's going into her first year. I'll let you all introduce yourselves then," he said as he left the room and went back downstairs.

"Over here Lauren!" yelled James, who was sitting with Albus a group of other kids. "This is Lucy and Fred. They're my cousins and they're all second years like me. Dominique's my cousin too, but she's a third year. And Louis is also my cousin, except he's a first year," he explained as he pointed to each of them. "There's also Molly, a fifth year, and Victoire, a seventh year, but they're downstairs right now."

"Is everyone here your cousin?"

"Yeah, basically," he said as he pointed out the others, "Except you, you're my _second _cousin. "

"Are you American?" asked Lucy.

"Uh, yeah. I moved to America from England when I was two and I've lived there ever since."

"Ah, so you only knows American wizards?"

"No, actually. Both my parents were, um, what's the word?"

"Muggles," whispered James.

"Muggles, that's it."

"I've heard a lot about American muggles," chimed in Dominique. "Didn't they kill a bunch of witches once?"

"I wouldn't know, I never paid attention in history class."

"Hmmm. What part of America did you live in?"

"I lived in Stoneham, Massachusetts, right outside of Boston."

"Is that close to New York?"

"It's about 5 hours away, but we usually drove there at least once every couple of months."

"You drove five hours!"

"It's not the long of a car ride honestly, we would just watch a few movies on the way there."

"I wouldn't be able to sit in a car ride for more then 45 minutes," said Lucy. "Roxanne, Rose, come here!" she yelled at two red headed girls who were whispering in the corner. "Have you two met Lauren yet?"

"No, not yet," said the shorter of the two girls. "Hi, I'm Roxanne," she smiled.

"And I'm Rose," said the other one. "We'll be in your year at Hogwarts."

"Cool," said Lauren as she gave an awkward smiled back.

"Do you know what house you're going to be in yet?" asked Roxanne.

"House?"

"Does she not know about the houses?" Roxanne asked Lucy.

"Not yet, she's from a muggle family in America. But she was born here."

"Ohhhh, that's makes sense. Well basically, there's for houses: Gryffindor for the brave, Hufflepuff for the loyal, Ravenclaw for the smart, and Slytherin for the cunning. And you live with your houses and compete for house points against all the other houses. And whichever house has the most points at the end of the year wins the house cup."

"That sounds fun, we don't have anything like that in America. We just compete against other schools in sports and stuff."

"That sounds like more fun. I've never been to a real school before. My mum's homeschooled my siblings and I our whole lives."

"Really? I would hate to be homeschooled, I wouldn't be able to see any of my friends."

"That's why I'm glad to be going to Hogwarts. And I won't have to deal with my mum yelling at me all the time either."

"We should probably get going if we want to make it to the portkey in time," said James. The kids all stood up, including Lily and the little boy she was playing with. They headed downstairs, where the shop was empty except for a large group of parents waiting in a herd.

"Don't worry!" said George. "We still've got 3 minutes until the portkey activates!"

"Portkey?" asked Lauren.

"It's a thing that people use to transport themselves all together. Just make sure to hold on when we say so," said James.

"Ok..."

"Everyone grab on!" yelled George. "We're leaving in 6...5...5...3...2...1…NOW!" Lauren held on tightly to what looked like a bicycle wheel. Suddenly, everything started spinning out of control. She struggled to hold on, and was scared when George shouted "Let go!" She fell down with everyone else onto the hard ground. As she stood up, it was clear that they weren't in Diagon Alley anymore. She looked around and realized that they were in a field, and there was a house in the distance that everyone seemed to be walking toward. She followed them, confused as to why this was the place they were going to. It looked like a tiny little shack, and there was no way they'd all fit in there.

When she finally reached the house, James was holding the door open for everyone.

"Welcome to the burrow," he told Lauren as she entered. "It's our grandmother's house, but we have family dinners here at least once a month." The house turned out to be much bigger on the inside. She followed everyone through the house and into a large dining room. The table extended through nearly the entire house.

"Alright, alright! Calm down! Albus and James, you two sit here! Lucy can you move down a seat so that Harry can sit next to Ginny once he gets here?" yelled an old woman, who was trying to handle the chaos of seating a dozen kids and there parents. Once she had finally sorted everyone out, she looked up at Lauren, who was still standing. "And you must be the Potter's summer visitor! I'm Mrs. Weasley, nice to meet you! How about you sit in between Rose and Louis over there?" she said as she pointed to a small gap in the table. Lauren sat in between them, and a plate suddenly appeared in front of her. Rose had her back turned to her as she was talking away with Roxanne. Dominique, who was sitting on the other side of Louis, was talking with an older girl who Lauren hadn't met yet. She decided to try and start a conversation with Louis while they waited for the adults to be sit down for dinner.

"Which house are you hoping to get?" she asked him.

"My dad was a Gryffindor, but my mum didn't go to Hogwarts so she was never sorted into a house. I don't really know where I want to go. My sister Dominique's a Gryffindor, but my other sister, Victoire," he said as he pointed to the girl talking with Dominique, "is a Hufflepuff, so I'll probably end up in one of those two houses."

"Why didn't your mom go to Hogwarts?"

"She grew up in France, so she went to their wizarding school. Beauxbatons."

"There's more wizarding school?"

"Yep. Eleven in total, I think."

"Is there one in America?"

"Yeah, Ilvermorny. It's probably Hogwarts's biggest competitor."

"Why didn't I get a letter to go there?"

"Because you were born in England, so the Book of Admittance and Quill of Acceptance wrote your name down for Hogwarts."

"Hmm, that's weird. I wish I could go to the American one so I'd be closer to my family."

"Hogwarts is much better in my opinion, though I might be biased."

"Is the school big?"

"It's huge from what I've heard. It's a castle, and there's a lake, a forest, and a quidditch pitch."

"What exactly is quidditch anyway?"

"Well, it starts with seven people on each team. There's a seeker, a keeper…" Lauren listened as Louis explained quidditch in detail. Halfway through his explanation however, just as he was getting to the scoring rules, Harry walked into the dining room with another woman. Ron stood up and hugged her before they sat down next to each other.

"Blimey, it took yas long enough!" yelled Mrs. Weasley as she jokingly hit Harry on the shoulder. "Well, now that we're all here, let's eat!"

Food appeared on everyone's plates. Lauren had been used to a strict diet at home. She could only eat the all organic food that her mom made, never takeout. Whenever they ate at a restaurant, her mom always ordered a salad for her. No sweets except for special events, and she could only drink water and orange juice. It wasn't just her mother that made her watch her diet, it was her consciousness telling her that if she overate, she would become fat and ugly and all of her friends would leave her. So she usually ate little during lunch at school. Whenever they want out to Starbucks, she would just order a lemon water while everyone else ordered sugary frappuccinos. But now, she didn't feel bad about eating at all. There was so much food that it didn't really seem to matter how much she ate. Louis continued to explain Quidditch to her.

"So what house do you think I'll be in?" she asked him.

"I dunno. As long as you don't get Slytherin, you'll be fine."

"What's wrong with Slytherin?"

"Just about everything. They used to only accept wizards who came from pureblood families. They hated muggles and muggle born wizards. And nearly every single dark wizard came from there. They claim that they've changed now, but it's rubbish. Just because they accept muggle borns now doesn't mean that they _actually _like them. It's all a big scam to clear up their reputation if you ask me."

"Hmmm. Is anyone here in Slytherin?"

"No one, thank god. But Albus is paranoid he's gonna get put in Slytherin. I would hate to have to live in their dorms."

"Why?"

"Slytherin dorms are in the dungeons."

"Where are all the other dorms?"

"Well Gryffindor and Ravenclaw are in towers, but Hufflepuffs is in a secret passahe by the kitchens."

"Are the dorms nice?"

"Yeah, you live with 2-4 other people and the rooms are huge. The beds are all canopy beds and the windows show you an amazing view of the lake. And there's a common room for each house that connects the boys and girls dorms. They have a fire place and giant comfy chairs. And there's usually big parties to celebrate quidditch victories and stuff in there." Lauren was so caught up in her conversation with Louis that she didn't even notice when dessert appeared on her plate. Afterwards, the adults went upstairs to, "discuss important matters," and left the kids in the dining room. Without the adults around, they were all able to sit closer to each other and have a group wide discussion.

"How often are the quidditch games?" asked Lauren.

"Twice a week, but your house only plays once a week," explained Dominique.

"Do you any of you play?"

"We all play, but Molly's the only one on her house team. She's a chaser," explained James. Molly smiled proudly.

"The best part is," added Lucy, "that quidditch is never cancelled. Rain or shine, they always play." Fred chimed in,

"_And _people get super into the games. They get facepaint and giant signs." The other kids continued to explain quidditch, but Lauren thought back to just a few months before in October when she went to the football games at the high school with her friends. They'd paint their faces with dots around their eyes and get dressed up according to the theme. They would sit on the stands, admiring the cheer team. She and her friends had always wanted to be cheer captains together in high school. She felt a sudden wave of sadness as she remembered that her dreams of standing out on the track every Friday night in the gold and white uniforms were gone. She could sense a tear streak down her cheek, and she quickly got up to go to the bathroom.

She looked in the mirror, trying to hold herself together. But it was no use. She burst into tears and tried to make no noise. She thought back to what her mother had always told her: _Never let them see you cry_. She grabbed a tissue and cleaned up her mascara. She returned to the dining room and sat back down with the kids, who all stared at her.

"Are you alright?" whispered a concerned Louis.

"I-I'm fine. Just fine."

"Was it something I said?"

"No, nothing. I'm fine!"

The rest of the night was quiet, except for Roxanne and Rose gossiping with each other and James bragging to everyone about his new broomstick. Lauren was relieved when Harry and Ginny decided it was time to leave. As they stepped into the chimney, however, she felt a sense of guilt and regret for having been so harsh to Louis. It was to late to apologize now, the next time she'd see him they'd be off to Hogwarts. She saw a sudden flash of green light, and stepped out into the Potter's living room. She seriously needed to sleep.


	5. All Aboard the Hogwarts Express

The next three months with the Potter's flew by. Lauren spent almost all her time shopping for more robes or spending time with her cousins. She found the wizarding fashions strange at first, but grew to love them. Ginny and her would take trips to magical boutiques at least once a week, with Lily occasionally tagging along. Albus and her eventually grew close too after they started studying their school books together. The two of them used the fact that they were still allowed to use magic outside of school to their advantage, and hexed James whenever possible. While Albus was quiet, he was really funny once she got to know him. Before they knew it, they were packing their bags for their first year at Hogwarts. While Lauren had experienced the wizarding world for a while now, her American-Muggle traits still played a huge part in her personality.

"Hey Lily," she asked as she packed her trunk, "what exactly do people wear when we board the train?"

"Muggle clothes, or else people would stare. But then you'll change into your Hogwarts robes on the train."

"Wait, there's going to be muggles at the station? Won't they see a giant train engine, or is it invisible?"

"There's a portal in Kings Cross that takes us into the platform, so they won't see it."

"Ohh, that makes sense. What do you think about this outfit?" Lauren asked as she held up a light washed jean skirt with a red off the shoulder top.

"It's cute! I'm really going to miss you Lauren."

"Awww, I'm going to miss you too! But at least you'll have the house to yourself."

"I guess, but it'll be boring."

"Don't worry, I'll write you all the time."

Lauren finished packing up her trunk. Ginny had to cast a spell on it to give her extra room so that she could fit all of her extra clothes, hair supplies, and makeup. While she was packing, she found her phone stuck in between her mattress and the frame of her bed. She had completely forgotten about it to be honest. She had spent so much time doing other things that checking Instagram stopped seeming like a priority. Regardless, she put it in her pocket so that she could listen to music on the train ride.

When the day finally came, Lauren lugged her trunk down stairs. Ginny was taking pictures of the three kids as they headed off for Hogwarts, while Harry carried their trunks outside. The family car was huge on the inside and reminded Lauren of an RV, except there were multiple rooms. She felt it rumbling as it started, but then she felt something strange. She looked at the window and realized they were going up. Albus saw her peering out the window.

"Don't worry, it's just to get us there faster. And dad already charmed it so that muggles can't see it," he told her. She breathed a sigh of relief and sat down on the couch. She felt a nervous feeling grow in her. This was it, she was actually going to Hogwarts. No turning back now.

The car ride was over pretty quickly, and the family parked in the lot of Kings Cross Station. Harry put each of their trunks onto a different cart. Lauren grabbed the one with hers and placed Charli, along with a few other small packages, on top. They pushed their carts into the station, with several people giving them weird looks. Lily sat on top of James's cart, while Harry and Ginny led the family to a wall that divided platforms 9 and 10. Lauren looked around, trying to spot the portal.

"Alrighr Lily, time to get off," said James as he got into a running position. He began to sprint toward the brick wall, and just like that, he was gone. Harry gripped Albus's cart, and the two ran forward together. Lauren, who was a little hesitant, ran forward after them while Ginny and Lily waved at her. She closed her eyes and prepared to go through the portal. She felt a gush of cold wind, opened her eyes, and suddenly found her self on the platform. Ginny and Lily ran in right after her, and the three walked over to where Harry, James, and Albus were already standing.

"C'mon kids, let's go say hi to everyone," said Harry as he led them to a huge group of adults. Lauren recognized most from the dinner. Just a few feet away, there was a huge group of children who she also remembered. Albus and James walked over to the kids, and she followed.

"The only reason Hufflepuff stands a chance against Ravenclaw is because they've got Treymund. But that's only one good player."

"And even if Ravenclaw wins, there's no way they can beat Gryffindor or Slytherin."

"Especially since we'll have James as our seeker this year!" laughed Molly. "Say, Albus, are you gonna play too? We have a lot of new spots on the team this year, and with your father's reputation, you might have a chance at making it." Albus shook his head.

"Quidditch isn't really my thing."

"Hmm, shame. Especially considering the legacy your father left behind." Albus bent his head and went quiet.

"Well, I'd bet that the Ravenclaw..." Lauren tuned the conversation out.

"Do you want to find a space on the train?" she asked Albus. He nodded his head and the two of them pulled their luggage onto the third train car. As they walked down it, they saw a compartment where a small boy sat alone. He had bright blonde hair and was staring out the window. Lauren knocked on the door.

"Are these seats taken?" she asked.

"No, er- here you go," he said, surprised. He seemed happy to have people that wanted to sit with him.

"I'm Lauren Dursley, and this is Albus Potter, my cousin."

"I'm Scorpius. Scorpius Malfoy." Albus's face went pale, but Lauren didn't notice.

"Are you a first year?"

"Yeah."

"So are we. What house are you hoping for?"

"My entire family's been in Slytherin, so I suppose I'll be in there. What about you two?"

"I don't know, I'm muggle born."

"My entire family's in Gryffindor, but I have a cousin in Hufflepuff, so there's always a chance."

Just then, there was a knock on the door. It was Rose, Roxanne, and two other girls. Rose looked around the compartment, and saw Scorpius. She gave him a nasty look, and then smiled at Lauren.

"Lauren, we're going to sit in the first car with everyone else. Care to join?" she asked, making it a point not to invite the boys.

"I'm fine where I am actually, I wouldn't want to leave my friends." Rose looked offended.

"Alright then. Enjoy your precious time with your _friends._" She slammed the sliding door shut so hard that it bounced back open. As Lauren stood up to close it again, she heard Rose and her friends talking to another girl. "Move it Macmillan, some of us actually have friends who are waiting for us right now." Lauren peeked out the door and saw a girl getting pushed to the side by Rose and her friends. As Rose left, the girl continued to walk down the aisle, peeking in every compartment to see if it was empty or if there was a place to sit.

"Hey!" yelled Lauren. "Do you wanna sit with us? We have an extra seat." The girl's eyes lit up and she nodded. She came in and sat down across from Lauren, next to Scorpius. Lauren was surprised when she saw how pretty she was. Why would Rose make fun of her? "What's your name?"

"I'm Andromeda Macmillan. What about you?"

"I'm Lauren Dursley, and this is my cousin Albus Potter." Albus smiled, clearly taking note of the girl.

"And I'm Scorpius Malfoy," added Scorpius as he held out his hand.

"Nice to meet you! Are you all first year's also?"

"Yeah, I'm excited!" exclaimed Lauren.

"Say, are you American?" asked Andromeda.

"Yeah, I was wondering the same thing," said Scorpius.

"I-uh, I was raised in America. But I moved in with Albus and his family for the summer so that I could get to know the wizarding world better."

"You're a muggle too?" asked Andromeda.

"Yeah," frowned Lauren.

"I wish I lived in the muggle world. Especially the American one. I heard the schools there are so much fun. Do you actually get to do sports in school?"

"Uh, yeah. You don't?"

"I don't think so. But I've never been to a real school, so I wouldn't know."

"Me neither," said Scorpius. "My mum homeschooled me." Lauren turned to Albus.

"How come your family is the only wizarding family I've met that actually goes to school?"

"Most families are scared that their kids are gonna accidentally do magic in front of the muggle kids. My dad made us go anyway though, so that we could socialize," explained Albus. Suddenly, the whistle on the train blew loudly. Scorpius and Albus opened up the window and the four of them leaned their heads out to wave goodbye to their families. The train made a turn as it pulled out of the station, and the platform was out of sight. The kids sat back down in their seats and close the window.

"What house are you hoping for?" Lauren asked Andromeda.

"My father was in Hufflepuff so I'll probably end up there. My mum went to Beauxbatons, so she was never sorted into a Hogwarts house."

"Oh! I was talking with one of Albus's other cousins in our year and his mum went there too I think."

"Louis Weasley?"

"Yeah, do you know him?"

"He's my cousin, his mum is my mum's older sister."

"Is everyone in this world related?"

"Basically."

"Hmm. Are you and Louis friends?" Lauren had taken an interest in Louis and was hoping Andromeda might be able to help her get to know him better.

"We used to be close when we were younger, but we don't really talk anymore. He started hanging out with his other cousins like Rose and all of them. Now he doesn't speak to me and they all give me nasty looks."

"Why though? I don't understand why they hate you."

"I don't know either," frowned Andromeda.

"Rose is mean to anyone and everyone. Even her own friends," said Albus. "The only reason those girls hang out with her is because her mum could end their parents's careers at any moment."

"How?" asked Lauren.

"Her mum's the Minister of Magic. It's like our version of the president."

"Is she really!" Lauren suddenly felt bad about denying Rose a friendship. But then she reminded herself that the only reason she felt bad was because she had found out that Rose had a high social status. And, even though it was for a split second, she felt guilty about wanting to be friends with someone solely to boost her own popularity. They heard a loud rumbling sound coming from outside. Andromeda stood up and slid open the compartment door.

"The trolley witch is coming!" she yelled as she went through her bag quickly.

"Huh?" asked Lauren, as the boys also rushed to find something in their bags.

"The trolley witch," whispered Albus. "She's this witch and she sells a bunch of candy off her cart during the train rides."

"Ohhh, ok." Lauren already had money in her pocket, and walked out with everyone else. Andromeda bought some chocolate frogs, Albus bought Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans, Scorpius bought cauldron cakes, and Lauren decided to buy some more glow-in-the-dark bubblegum. As they were paying for their treats, Rose and her friend group walked in to pick out their own sweets. Louis and some other boys walked close behind them. Lauren's face lit up at the sight of him. She was about to say hi to him when Rose interrupted.

"Well, if it isn't our favorite American!" laughed Rose. "Making friends with," she looked at Scorpius, "the _heir _of Slytherin?"

"At least I'm not an actual snake," said Scorpius.

"No need to get nasty Malfoy!" teased Roxanne. "Let's go before he breaks our nose." The group paid for their snacks and left the train cart. When Lauren and her friends finally sat back down, she looked at everyone and had a feeling that they all knew something that she didn't.

"How about Andromeda and I step out for a minute while you guys change into your robes?" suggested Lauren, trying to break the tension. The two girls left the compartment and walked up and down the aisle. "Why did she say Scorpius was going to break her nose?"

"It's complicated..."

"Is he dangerous?"

"No, not at all. It's just that... ok, you can't tell anyone this, promise?"

"Promise."

"Scorpius's dad beat up Albus's dad in their sixth year on the train and broke his nose. I mean, the two have worked out there differences since that, I think. But Scorpius's family has a history of being involved in some dark stuff. His grandfather and his father were both dark wizards before his father made the switch at the end of their seventh year. Ever since then, that Malfoy family barely leaves their mansion. Ever. They used to be super active in the magical world, but then they just vanished and no one knows what happened really. Some say that, uh..."

"Say what?"

"They say that Scorpius's real father is Voldemort."

"Who?"

"He was this dark wizard back when our parents were alive. He killed a lot of people, like Albus's grandparents. He also hated muggles and muggle borns, but Albus's dad killed him in the Battle of Hogwarts." Lauren had so many questions, but she didn't want to force Andromeda to say anything else. Suddenly, she heard the compartment door slide open as Albus and Scorpius got out in their robes. She and Andromeda went in to change, and stayed silent the whole time. No one said a word until the boys were back in the compartment.

"What do you think Hogwarts is going to be like?" asked Scorpius.

"My dad said it was like a castle!" exclaimed Andromeda.

"My dad gave me a map of the whole school," said Albus as he reached for his bag.

"Did he actually?!" I asked.

"Yeah, and the best part is, it shows everyone in the school too and exactly where they are."

"Wicked!" yelled Scorpius. Albus pulled out an old, folded up piece of paper. There was only one problem, it was blank. They looked at him confused, before he lifted his wand to it and said,

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good!" Suddenly, ink drawings appeared all over the paper. "It even shows Hogsmead, the local village!"

"Where did your dad get this?"

"My grandfather made it with his friends when he went to Hogwarts. He had an invisibility cloak too, but that went to my brother."

"Do you realize all the possibilities Albus! All the stuff we could do with this map!"

The kids examined the map, reading the names of all the professors who were waiting at the castle for them. They were still trying to locate the Hufflepuff dormitory when they heard a loud voice that seemed to be coming from a speaker, except there were no speakers in sight.

_Attention all students. We will be arriving at Hogwarts in 5 minutes. Leave all luggage on the train, it will be brought up to your dormitory for you. _

The four kids shoved their candy into their pockets while Albus quickly whispered, "Mischief managed!" and folded the map back into his pocket.


	6. The First Night

Lauren got off the train with her three friends and followed a voice on the platform yelling,

"Firs' years! Firs' years this way!"

The four, along with several other students who looked their age, walked off the platform and through a trail in the woods. Lauren, who didn't want to get her white vans dirty, was carefully stepping in the exact footprints of Albus. Eventually, they reached a small fleet of rowboats on the river bank.

"No more than four to a boat!" yelled the voice.

Lauren and Andromeda rode in the front row of their boat, while Albus and Scorpius sat in the back and held up a large lamp together. Suddenly, they felt a large push forward and the boat thrusted into the river. She looked behind her, but no one was there. One by one, every boat entered the water and they formed a large triangle. The boats moved on their own through the river, while the students tried to spot any sign of Hogwarts that they could.

"Who's the guy who's been yelling at us?" Lauren whispered to her group.

"Hagrid- I think," responded Albus. "He's the Care of Magical Creatures professor, he and my dad were friends. He's been here forever." The boats continued to drift along the river until the kids noticed a turn up ahead.

"Are yas ready?" yelled the voice. Everyone was silent, this would be it. They would finally see Hogwarts. The boats turned with the river as it merged into a lake and there it was, even grander then they'd expected. It was an old stone castle that towered over everything surrounding it. Lights could be seen coming out of every room. Everyone was whispering to their friends in amazement.

"I heard it's even bigger on the inside!"

"I heard that we'll have to climb all the way up that tower for astronomy!"

"Look, I think I see the quidditch pitch!" The students were so caught up in their surroundings that they hardly noticed when their boat ride ended.

"Alright then, let's get goin'!" yelled Hagrid as he led the kids up a long path up the hill. "C'mon now! Keep up or you'll never make it to Hogwarts!" he laughed.

The kids followed him up a narrow path that looked like it had been carved out by the last classes walking up it in prior years. As the students walked closer and closer to the castle, they eventually reached the entrance doors. Hagrid knocked on them twice, and a small dwarf of a man welcomed them in. The entrance hall was enchanting. The ceilings reached even higher then Lauren's house and were decorated with gold.

"Ah! The first years! Welcome! Welcome to Hogwarts!" he exclaimed cheerfully. "Now, now, follow me this way!" They followed the man through a hallway, made a right turn, and through another hallway until they reached a large set of doors almost as big as the ones before. The small man stood in front of them and blocked them from entering.

"Now, before we begin, I must go over what's about to happen. You are all about to take part in the Sorting Ceremony. Don't worry, it's quite simple. All you have to do is sit on the stool once I call your name. The hat will examine your mind, and place you in one of four houses. Gryffindor for the brave, Hufflepuff for the loyal, Ravenclaw for the intelligent, and Slytherin for the cunning. You will sit at your house table after that. You will eat, live, and learn with your housemates everyday. Your good deeds will earn you house points, while your mistakes will lose you points. The house with the most points at the end of the year will win the house cup! Any questions?" Everyone remained silent. "Good! Now, I'll be right back, I just have to make sure everyone inside is ready" He slid through the door carefully, making sure that they couldn't see what was inside. Students began to whisper.

"My sister told me that the hat yells out all of your deepest secrets when you're up there."

"I heard that 9 students got lice from it last year."

"Does it talk?" Lauren whispered to Albus.

"From what I've heard, yes."

Lauren was horrified. What if it yelled out to all her classmates all the dumb things she'd done before she got here? She was so excited about starting on a clean slate. But, now she was going to ruin her entire reputation before she even started off the school year. The man pushed his way back through the door.

"It's time!" he yelled excitedly. The doors opened on their own and revealed a massive room with four long tables, filled with students. They walked up the aisle in between the two center tables, all the way to the end of the room. There was a large table perpendicular to the rest which looked like it sat the teachers. The students stood in a cluster around the stairs that lead up to the this table. The small man grabbed a stool that reached up to his chin and placed it at the top of the steps, facing all of the students. He then grabbed a scroll off the table and unrolled it. "When I call your name, please step forward and I will place the hat on your head. Aster, Rachel?" A tan and brunette girl stepped forward, shaking. She sat on the stool while the dwarf man stood on his tippy toes to reach her head. The hat was there for about 15 seconds before yelling,

"Ravenclaw!" Cheers rose from the second table from the right. She hurried over and sat with her house, shaking hands with the older students.

Poppy Barnes went to Gryffindor. Jackson Bulstrode wen to Slytherin. Kaylee Copland went to Gryffindor. Tamara Dardenne went to Ravenclaw. She was too busy looking at everything around her that Lauren was surprised to hear the little man call out,

"Dursley, Lauren?" She nervously walked up the three stairs, trying not to lose her balance and fall. She sat on the stool and gripped onto the bottom in an attempt to sit still. The hat, which looked like a filthy piece of dirt, was placed on her head. She took several deep breaths in.

"Ahhhh, strong I see, no doubt about that. Not very strong in the intelligent portion, eh?" she heard a little voice in her ear whisper. "Loyal, but not quite a Hufflepuff. Hmmm... ambitious and cunning above all else, but not a pureblood. I can still sense magical blood in you though from past generations though. It's faint, but there. Well then, it'd better be... SLYTHERIN!" She heard cheers coming from the far right of the room, and went over to sit with them, across from Jackson Bulstrode. She breathed a sigh of relief now that that was over and sat back to watch everyone else get sorted.

Rose, Roxanne, and their friends got sorted into Gryffindor. Louis and his friends were divided between Gryffindor and Hufflepuff. Albus, to almost everyone's surprise, ended up in Slytherin. Two more boys named Titus and Dominic joined the Slytherin table. Andromeda, along with two girls named Celine and Madison, joined them too, much to Lauren's delight. Once all of the first years had been seated, a tall old woman who sat in a large throne in the center of the teacher's table stood up.

"Good evening everyone, and welcome to another term at Hogwarts! For those who don't know me, I'm Headmistress Mcgonagall and I taught many of your parents during their times here. I'm more than pleased to welcome our new first years and congratulate them on a successful sorting ceremony! As a few reminders..." Lauren stopped paying attention after that. Whatever she was saying, it probably wasn't that important because everyone around the Great Hall was whispering to their friends for the remainder of her speech. Suddenly, the woman clapped her hands twice and the room went silent. The scent of warm food filled the air, and Lauren looked down to see all sorts of dishes prepared for them and placed along the table. Feeling guilty about having indulging herself with junk food all summer, she chose to eat only a Caesar salad.

"This is amazing!" exclaimed Andromeda. "I knew the food was good, but I didn't realize it was this nice!"

"My dad said they have the _best _toast for breakfast," added Celine.

"Where are you all from anyway?" Lauren asked her fellow first years.

"I'm from Scotland," replied Celine. "My dad's a wizard and my mum's a muggle."

"I grew up about 10 minutes from Oxford," explained Dominic, who was also a half blood. Madison and Titus were both purebloods. Titus was a jokester who didn't seem to take anything seriously. Madison appeared to be a quiet girl at first, but once Lauren got talking to her, she found out they had a lot in common. While Madison was pureblood, she grew up in muggle London and went to the local public schools there. She and Lauren found out that they both loved the same tv shows, music, and fashion. Celine, on the other hand, grew up in a primarily magic world. And while she was a sweetheart, Lauren knew it would be a while before they could find anything that they had in common. Dominic was nice and was definitely the more intelligent of the bunch. After Madison had finished explaining her story, they all looked at Lauren.

"Well, I-um, I was born in London. But when I was two my family moved to America and we've lived there ever since. I didn't even know I was a witch, but my dad's cousin was a wizard. So I moved in with him and his family for the summer so that I could get a better sense of the wizard world before I came here, which is how I met Albus and his siblings."

"So you never knew about Hogwarts before then?" asked Titus.

"Nope, never. I went to public school in America for all my life."

"Is it true that American girls all dye their hair blonde and paint themselves orange?" asked Madison. Lauren started to laugh.

"Most of us dye our hair blonde or get blonde highlights. And we all like to tan in the summer too, but some girls get fake tans in the winter. It doesn't look that good though if you ask me."

The kids continued to laugh as they shared the American and British stereotypes that they had heard. The conversation stopped once they realized that dinner had been replaced with an array of desserts lined up and down the tables. Lauren went for the miniature chocolate fountain with strawberries surrounding it. All eight of the other first years tried it out too, and laughed when Titus accidentally caused it to splatter onto his robes. After dessert, the Headmistress gave a few closing remarks and sent the students to bed. The first years followed Hope Enger, a fifth year prefect, to their dormitories.

While all the other houses were going upstairs, they were going down. The went down two staircases until they were in a cold, dimly lit corridor that appeared to be made of only stone. There were a few lamps that only lit when you walked by them. The students followed Hope until they reached a large, brick wall. The looked at each other, then at her. Was this a joke? Was there a door there that they just couldn't see?

"Serpentis oscula," said Hope, firmly. The stone wall began to rattle a little, before each stone pushed away to the side and revealed a large room. "The password will always be in Latin and it will always start with Serpentis, which means Serpent. Right now, the password means, 'serpent's kiss.' It's important that you never share the password with anyone outside of Slytherin House. Understand?" They nodded their heads. "Good then, follow me in."

They walked into a large room, decorated with green and silver. All the light came from lamps that were placed around the room. The windows were dark blue, and the shadows of what looked like fish were passing by.

"Are we underwater?" asked Madison.

"Yes," replied Hope. "Our common room and dormitories were originally dungeons. It might sound bad, but trust me, it's quite peaceful. And the best part is that there's small secret passages hidden all around here if you look in the right places, but don't tell anyone I told you that. I wish I could give you the full tour of the common room, but it's getting late and you have classes in the morning. Girls, if you take the right staircase and go up three floors, you'll be at your dorms. Boys, same for you, but take the left staircase. Any questions? No? Good night then!" Hope dashed up the stairs to her own dormitory, with the girls following her while the boys went their own way.

They opened the door for the third floor, and found four canopy beds. There was a large pillar in the center of the room with four mirrors, four sinks, four counters, and four cabinets. Each of their items were placed next to a different bed. Lauren's were in between Madison and Andromeda. The girls changed into their pajamas before brushing their teeth.

"Do you really think there could be secret passages?" asked Andromeda.

"I'm sure of it, this castle is thousands of years old. Who knows what's hidden in here!" replied Celine.

"I read that there's a secret chamber that Salazar Slytherin built. And he put a giant snake in there that ended up killing some kids and petrifying a bunch more," said Andromeda. Madison looked horrified. "But don't worry, Harry Potter killed it during his second year. Now the chamber's abandoned, but the bones still remain."

"Wicked!" exclaimed Celine. "Y'know what would be really cool?"

"What?" asked Andromeda.

"If we found it one day. And then we could turn it into a hideout spot or something."

"Yeah, that would be cool except for the fact that there's a giant snake skeleton sitting in there," laughed Madison.

"That's why we have magic! We can just shrink it down then throw it out, easy."

"Hmmm, it would be fun. If we could find it, I'd totally be down to renovate it," said Lauren. "But I don't want to go looking for it like a mad man. Andromeda, maybe we can ask Albus tomorrow if it's on his map?"

"Map?" asked Madison.

"Yeah, Albus's dad gave him a map of the whole school. And it shows where everyone is."

"That's crazy! Maybe we could team up with the boys and all of us could find it together!"

The girls giggled about their plans for the next couple minutes. And by the time they finally went to sleep, they had a vivid plan of how they were going to decorate the chamber.


	7. The First Day

The Slytherin first years sat in the Great Hall eating breakfast that morning, looking through Albus's map to try and find the Chamber of Secrets.

"Maybe the chamber just doesn't exist," suggested Madison.

"No way! I've heard so many stories about it, it has to be here somewhere!" exclaimed Titus.

"Wait a minute, Albus! Didn't you say that your grandfather made this with his friends?" asked Lauren.

"Yeah, why?"

"Maybe they never discovered the chamber."

"Wait a minute, you might be right. My dad did say there's a lot of things in the castle that aren't on this map..."

"Didn't your dad kill the monster in the chamber?" asked Dominic.

"Yeah..." groaned Albus.

"So why don't you just write to your dad and ask him where it is? Say it's for a project or something."

"My dad would just say that I need to go to the library like every other student and that I can't get special treatment just for being his son."

"How long do you reckon it will take for us to find it then?" asked Celine.

"Find _what_?" they heard a voice behind them. A Ravenclaw first year named Thomas Torst stood behind them.

"Thomas!" yelled Jackson, who Lauren had forgot was sitting with them.

"What are you all looking at?" asked Thomas, who leaned down to see the map.

"We're looking for the chamber of secrets," explained Titus. The girls glared at him.

"We're not supposed to tell anyone outside of Slytherin!" hissed Celine.

"Relax," joked Titus. "The Ravenclaws are cool, they won't rat us out. It's the Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors that we have to worry about."

"Alright," she groaned.

"Basically," explained Dominic, "we're going to try and find the chamber of secrets and turn it into a secret hang out spot only for the Slytherins and Ravenclaws in our year."

"Wicked!" exclaimed Thomas. "But how are you going to find it?"

"We haven't quite figured that part out yet, but-"

"Guys come over here!" yelled Thomas to the other Ravenclaw first years. "Check we're gonna turn the chamber of secrets into a hiding spot," he explained quietly.

"Did you find it yet?" asked a Ravenclaw girl.

"Not yet, but we're close. Just remember, it's only for Slytherins and Ravenclaws. _No one else._" Suddenly, there was a large rustling sound as a gust of wind pushed through the room. Lauren looked up and saw hundreds of owls rushing in through the windows, dropping envelopes and packages onto the tables. She spotted Charli amongst the many, who dropped down in front of her breakfast. Lauren gave her a few bits of a muffin she didn't want.

She untied the items from Charlie's legs before she flew away, and counted 3 letters and 3 packages. The first letter was from Lily and read:

_Dear Lauren,_

_How was your train ride and your first day? Is it exciting there? Is it really a castle? What house did you get into? Is the food good? Please respond and tell me everything!_

_Love,_

_Lily_

"Did Lily send you a letter with a bunch of questions too?" asked Albus, who had only received two letters.

"Yeah," laughed Lauren. "Who's your other letter from?"

"Just my mum. My dad doesn't really get a chance to sit down and write, he's too busy." Lauren opened the next letter which was tied to a package. Both were from Ginny, and the package contained a few small things Lauren left at the house, including a pair of hoop earrings, her phone charger, and two nail polish bottles.

_Lauren,_

_I hope you're off to a great start at Hogwarts! I've attached a few things I've found sitting around the house that you left. Uncle Harry sends his best! Make sure to write back and tell me all about how it's going for you!_

_Lots of Love,_

_Aunt Ginny_

The last letter had another envelope inside of it. It had a postage stamp, and the address was written to Harry in pen.

_Dear Lauren, _

_Your uncle told us that if we wanted to talk to you, we'd have to write letters. We didn't know who to write to, so we sent them to him first. Are you at school yet? Your brother left for Smeltings last week, he's going to be playing soccer there. Are you doing any sports yet? What are your uniforms like? Are they nice? What's your room like? Your father would like to know what you're studying. Are you eating well? I hope you're remembering to eat healthy. We've decided that our winter vacation this year is going to be to Melbourne. I know we went when you were six, but we thought it would be fun to go back. Will you be able to come home for it? Do they celebrate Christmas there? Your friends say hi, they've been stopping by everyday. There's also a new family who just moved in next to us. They have a daughter named Samantha who's your age. I've ordered you some new clothes now that it's getting colder for you, so expect to get those soon. I've also sent some gifts that I've found while out shopping that I think you'll like. Write me in case you need anything else. _

_Love,_

_Mom_

Lauren could feel her mother's controlling spirit as she read the letter opened the two packages. One was filled with new makeup, while the other had a new handbag and fairy lights to decorate her room. Just then, the students around the Great Hall stood up and started to leave as the food from breakfast disappeared.

"What do we have first?" ask Andromeda.

"History of Magic, with Hufflepuff," moaned Jackson, who was looking at a piece of paper. "It's on the fourth floor." The students all headed up the stairs while Celine was blabbered that the only class she was looking forward to was flying. Lauren was secretly excited to have a class with Hufflepuff, maybe now she would finally be able to talk with Louis. Thankfully, Albus's map helped them to get to their class on time. They reached a classroom, and didn't see a teacher in there at all.

"Do you think we're allowed to go in?" asked Madison.

"If we don't go in now, we're going to get trampled by all the other students trying to get through," said Titus, pushing the door opened. They walked in and realized that there had been a teacher there the whole time. They just hadn't seen him because he was, well, a ghost.

"Ah! First years! Yes, yes, come in, have a seat! I'm Professor Binns, I'll be your History of Magic Professor," he smiled. Lauren wanted to wait for the Hufflepuffs to come so that she could sit with Louis, but Andromeda was calling over to her.

"Lauren, c'mon! I grabbed us a seat in the back!"

Lauren reluctantly walked over to the back of the classroom. Celine and Madison sat in the desk next to them, while the boys sat in the desks in front of them. Poor Jackson was the odd one out and had to sit on the other side of the room where the Hufflepuffs would be sitting.

The badger house took an extra 10 minutes to find their way to the classroom, and scrambled into their seats. Professor Binns, who had already started teaching, didn't even notice them. He had an old, weary voice that sounded like it dragged on for eternity. He stood at the blackboard while writing down names and dates, oblivious to what the students were doing behind him. The Slytherin students were all whispering to each other, except for Dominic, who was taking notes. Lauren kept trying to catch Louis's eye, but he was talking to the other Hufflepuffs.

The class ended after what felt like hours in the stuffy, hot classroom. The Slytherins gathered around the map to try and find their next class: Transfiguration with Gryffindor. Lauren quickly dashed over to Louis before he left.

"Louis! Can we talk for a sec?" she asked.

"Ooh, Louis is getting hit on by the American," teased one of his friends.

"_Alone,"_ she emphasized as she rolled her eyes. He stayed behind to talk to her, while the rest of them waited outside the door.

"What is it?" he asked.

"Listen, I just wanted to say I'm sorry for lashing out on you at the dinner and it was completely uncalled for and-"

"It's fine, don't worry. Listen, I've gotta get to my next class, but we can talk during dinner tonight, ok?"

"Sounds good," she smiled, feeling a sense of relief now that she knew he wasn't mad at her. As she walked over to the Slytherins, who had almost worked out their path, Titus looked up at her.

"Why were you talking with one of the bumblebees?"

"Oh, we're just, um, family friends, ya know?"

"Sure then," he smirked at the rest of the boys. "C'mon, if we cut across the grand staircase and go up two floors, we can get to the Transfiguration corridor. But we have to hurry to make it before Gryffindor so that we can get the good seats." The kids followed his directions and moved together in a herd through the hallways. They reached an old door with one of those blurred glass windows and a crystal door knob. Lauren, who was in the front of the group, slowly twisted the doorknob and peaked inside. There was a boney, pale, and middle aged lady wearing lavender robes sitting at a desk.

"Out!" she snapped at the sight of Lauren, who quickly slammed the door and looked at the rest of her friends.

"Are we just supposed to sit here and wait until she wants us to come in?" she grunted. The Gryffindor first years were walking up the hallway and stood at the other side of the door. The teacher then politely opened the door.

"Welcome first years! Come in and take a seat!" she cheered as she stretched out her arm to prevent the Slytherins from entering before the Gryffindors, who snatched all of the back seats. The Slytherins were forced to take the two front rows. "My name is Professor Pewtrie, and I teach Transfiguration here at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry! I'm also the head of Gryffindor house!" There was a small round of applause from the back rows. "Thank you, thank you. Now, in this class you will learn the delicate art of transforming objects into something else. It's a crucial part of a wizard's rudimentary skills, and I hope you find it just as fascinating as I! Now, some of you will no doubt need a few extra lessons in the behavior department from what I've seen so far." She glared at Lauren, who was slouched down in her seat. "And as for that, I'd like to remind you all that I don't allow any rule breaking in my classroom and all who committ misdemeanors will be punished accordingly. Understood?" Lauren rolled her eyes. Pewtrie continued to rant and yell at any Slytherin who dared to break eye contact with her, taking points every time. Meanwhile, the Gryffindors in the back didn't even have their books on their desks, but she hardly seemed to notice. When the class was over, the Slytherins bolted out of there.

"Apparently some of us need a few extra lessons in the _behavior department,_" laughed Lauren as she mocked Pewtrie to her friends. "What a nightmare that woman!"

"Maybe you shouldn't bad talk your teachers Lauren!" she heard a harsh voice from behind her snap. She turned around to see Rose with all of her friends standing behind her.

"Well, if it isn't Rosey Weasel! Great to see you again!"

"Move it, we have a class to be at."

"Oh my, I'm so _so _sorry! Everyone, make way for the queen and her minions!" Rose gave her a fierce look.

"You should watch your tone Dursley, or you might just end up back in America."

"At least I'd be thousands of miles away from you!"

"Hmph!" Rose flipped her hair and marched down the stairwell.

"What's her problem?"

"She's just a bitch, that's all."

The kids had charms with Ravenclaw next, something that they were actually looking forward to. The teacher's name was Professor Flitwick, and he was the same short man who had let them in the night before. He had to stand on his desk in order to see everyone, which they all thought was funny. He ended up being a pretty good teacher though, making sure every student understood what he was saying. Afterwards, they walked down to the Great Hall with the Ravenclaws, who sat at their table for lunch. Lauren looked up and saw Rose and her followers staring over at her, whispering.

"I don't think I've ever wanted to punch anyone more then I've wanted to punch Rose," she said, matching Rose's glare.

"Try having her for a cousin," complained Albus.

"My mummy's the Minister of Magic!" Titus mocked.

"Do we have any more classes with Slytherin?" asked a Ravenclaw girl named Gigi. A Ravenclaw boy named Dimitri pulled out his schedule.

"We have double flying lessons after this with all of our year. Then we have Astronomy with Gryffindor and Herbology with Hufflepuff. But we might have more classes with them tomorrow." Dominic looked down at his schedule.

"We have double flying lessons with everyone, Defense Against the Dark Arts with Hufflepuff, and Potions with Gryffindor." Everyone groaned, they didn't want to spend another second with the Gryffindors.

"At least the Potions Professor is head of Slytherin. Maybe they'll put Gryffindor in their place," added Andromeda.

The students finished up their meals and headed outside to the courtyards, where 40 broomsticks were layed down in two parallel rows. A tall woman with jet black hair and bright blue eyes stood there waiting for them.

"Welcome to your first flying class. I'm Professor Loast, also head of the athletics department here. There's no point in me talking anymore, go stand to the left of a broom." She was a stern teacher who also had a sense of humor. "Now, before we begin, I want everyone to fly up about four feet and land back down. Don't worry, this is only a small test so that I can see which level you're on and who'll need the most help. Ready? Go!"

The wizard-born kids mounted their brooms, kicked up, and landed down with ease. The muggle-born students, however, were still standing there in awe. They copied what the other kids did and crossed their right leg over the broom while gripping onto the handle tightly. Most didn't make it more then three inches off the ground before losing their balance and tumbling off. Lauren managed to get up to about a foot before getting scared and landing roughly on the ground.

"How'd you manage that?" asked Madison, who was a little shaky on her broom.

"I dunno, I guess I just have good balance." Professor Loast walked to each student indivdually, correcting their mounting positions, grip, etc. Afterwards, she gave the students the remainder of the period to get adjusted to the school brooms. Rose was swerving through the courtyard, showing off to everyone while all of her friends trailed behind her. Lauren, Gigi, Madison, and a few other Ravenclaw girls stuck to the ground and watched their classmates. Scorpius was speeding through the air, gaining compliments from the teacher every 10 seconds.

Lauren was showing off her gymnastics tricks to her friends. She had just finished a back handspring when she heard Rose yell from above.

"Are you sure that you're a witch and not a circus performer?" Everyone behind her laughed, but the bell rang before Lauren could shoot back. Everyone grabbed their stuff before hurrying to their next class.

"Don't listen to her," comforted Albus as they walked to up the stairs. "She's just jealous that there's something that she's not the best in."

Defense Against the Dark Arts was mellow. The teacher was a middle aged man with long, blonde curly hair that he pulled into a ponytail. His name was Professor Prewett, and he spent most of the period giving the students a brief summary of the years curriculum. On the bright side, Lauren got to sit at the table next to Louis, which meant that they could whisper to each other throughout class. To her disappointment, he spent most of the period talking quietly with the other Hufflepuffs.

Potions wasn't much better. The teacher, Professor Slughorn, was 118 years old and the curriculum he used was the same age. They had old books that they had to borrow from him because no stores sold them. The pages were torn out and the binding was falling apart. The man himself looked as though he would collapse into ashes if the wind blew to hard against him. On the bright side, he seemed to favor most of the Slytherin students over the Gryffindors, but not to the extent that Professor Pewtrie favored her own house. The class pretty laid back, with little to no rules. They spent was the entire period taking a tour of the room, learning all the different tools and their purposes.

After class, the students had a few hours left until dinner. The Slytherin and Ravenclaw first years sat down together in the courtyard. Everyone was writing their letters back home while discussing their day. Lauren, who was trying to write, kept getting distracted by the conversations.

"My mum just sent me another quill. She thinks I'm gonna break all of 'em."

"Does anyone have a copy of the Herbology textbook? I left mine in Transfiguration and I'm to scared to go back there."

"Is anyone trying out for quidditch? I overheard some 6th year Slytherins talking, they said that there's five openings for the team this year!" Scorpius almost jumped up at this news.

"Are you going to try out?" Lauren quietly asked him.

"Er, I don't know. Probably not, first years rarely make the house team."

"You should still try! Did you hear what he just said, there's five whole spots! And you're really good, Professor Loast was practically praising you today. Even if you don't make the actual team, you could still be a replacement for when someone gets injured, and that's bound to happen!" she encouraged him.

"Maybe, but I don't know."

The students kept talking while Lauren continued to try and write her letters, occasionally adding on to the discussions.

_Dear Aunt Ginny and Lily,_

_Things have been pretty good so far. Albus and I are in Slytherin together and we've both made plenty of friends. The castle is absolutely magnificent, I'm still trying to learn my way around though. The food is amazing and I'm enjoying most of my classes. Thanks for sending my stuff, and tell Uncle Harry I hope everything's going well with him. I look forward to seeing you both soon!_

_-Lauren_

"Ugh, why do we have to handwrite everything?" she complained to her friends. "You'd think that magic would be so advanced that we'd be able to talk with our minds."

"Well, you actually can do that. But it requires a ton of training and work and can hurt a lot from what I've read," explained Dominic.

"Hmm." Lauren started on the letter for her parents, but she had no clue where to start.

_Dear Mom and Dad,_

_I'm at school now, but I haven't quite decided if I want to do any sports. We got sorted into our houses, my cousin Albus and I are in Slytherin together. That house values cunning and ambitious traits above all else. Our uniforms are very comfy. We wear white dress shirts, a white and green tie, and grey sweater with white and green lining, a black skirt, long grey socks, black shoes, and a long black cloak with a green hood and our house emblem. I share a room with three other girls, but there's plenty of room. I have a giant canopy bed and a view of the lake outside. I'm studying loads of things. The food here is really good, we had a massive feast last night. Don't worry, I only had a salad. I don't know about holiday vacations yet, but I'll let you know. Tell my friends I miss them, and thanks for the gifts. If you're sending anything to me, keep sending it to Uncle Harry's, my owl can pick it up from there. _

_-Lauren_

She knew that the letter wasn't completely honest. But, if her parents knew that she was studying charms instead of algebra, they would drag her back home right away. She and a few other students who had finished their letters headed up to the owlery to send them. Afterwards, they filed into the Great Hall with the rest of the student body. The table was filled with several traditional British meals, which Lauren didn't find very appetizing. She ended up just eating some rolls and mashed potatoes.

"You should really eat more," nudged Madison. "I'm sure you could request something specific if you went down to the kitchen." Lauren thought back to the letter from her mom.

"I'm good. I'm not really hungry anyway."

After dinner, the Slytherin girls were starting to decorate their room. Lauren hung up her fairy lights around her bed and pinned several Polaroid pictures of her and her friends to the wall. Andromeda examined them closely.

"Why don't they move?" she asked, puzzled.

"Muggle pictures don't move," she laughed.

"That's weird." Lauren finished hanging up a mandela tapestry behind her bed before changing into her pajamas.

"I can't wait until we find the chamber. Then, we'll finally be able to talk somewhere without worrying about someone overhearing us," said Celine.

"Maybe we'll be able to practice flying in there!" exclaimed Andromeda.

"I'm trying to convince Scorpius to try out for the quidditch team. Did you see him today? Loast _loved _him," laughed Lauren.

"He has a good shot though. I'm pretty sure his dad was a second year seeker."

"He thinks he's not good enough, but there's five spots open this year. He's got a decent chance, there's no reason he shouldn't try." Andromeda and Celine looked at each other and giggled.

"What? Did I say something?"

"Lauren, it's pretty obvious why you want Scorpius on the team so badly," chuckled Andromeda.

"Huh?"

"You clearly like each other!" exclaimed Celine.

"No we don't, we're only friends. Besides, I like-" Lauren paused as she remembered Louis and her promise to talk to him at dinner. She felt horrible, this was the second time she had ignored him. Before she had a chance to finish her sentence, Madison jumped up from her bed.

"I've got it!" They all looked at her confused. "The chamber was created by Salazar Slytherin for the heir of Slytherin, right? So he's obviously out the entrance somewhere that would be easy for a Slytherin to access!"

"How does that help us?" asked Celine.

"Remember what Hope said? There are tons of secret passages ways in the Slytherin common room. The entrance is bound to be hidden in there somewhere!"

"Maddie you're a genius!" marveled Lauren. "Tomorrow, during breakfast, everyone will be in the Great Hall. We just have to tell the boys beforehand."

"It'll be perfect!" They continued to discuss their plan until they finally fell asleep and the room was silent.

**Hi all! Sorry it took so long for this chapter to go up! I hope you enjoyed it, and make sure to favorite/follow/review!**


	8. Chapter8

The Slytherin girls got up extra early the next morning in order to ensure that they'd catch the boys before they went downstairs. They sat in the common room while Lauren braided Madison's hair, waiting for everyone else to wake up. The prefects came first, then the 2/3/4 years, then the 5/6/7, but the 1st years didn't come down.

"Where in the world are they?" asked Andromeda.

"Let's give them 10 more minutes. If they don't come, we'll just go to breakfast without them," said Lauren.

15 minutes had passed until the girls gave up and headed to the Great Hall. To their surprise, the boys were already at the table. By the looks of their plates, they had finished their breakfast too. A handful of Ravenclaw students stood around them.

"We were waiting for you guys all morning in the common room!" exclaimed Andromeda. "Were you down here the whole time?"

"We used Albus's map to get around the school early this morning," explained Titus. "We were trying to find the chamber entrance, but we got lost."

"Well, we're pretty sure we've got an idea of where the chamber is," explained Madison. The rest of the students all piped up to listen. "If the chamber could only be opened by a Slytherin, then it would probably be somewhere only a Slytherin could enter."

"What are you getting at?"

"Hope told us that there were a bunch of secret passages in the common room. Maybe one leads into the chamber."

"Maddie that's genius!" gleamed Titus. Lauren could've sworn she saw Madison blush.

"So all we have to do is search the common room?" asked Jackson.

"That's the problem," Lauren started. "It'll look really suspicious if we're all tearing apart the dungeons. Plus the Ravenclaws aren't allowed in, so we'll have to find a way to make sure no one else is in there."

"We could just miss a class," suggested Thomas Torst.

"Too risky," explained Dominic. "What if someone comes in to grab something from their dorm?"

"Simple. We change the password so that they can't get in," said Celine.

"Only prefects can do that though," Dominic pointed out.

"Only prefects _know _how to do it. All we have to do is figure out how to change it and then we're good."

"What are we supposed to do, ask a prefect how?"

"No. We just follow them around until they change it."

"Do you think they won't notice if we're following them around?"

"Trust me, I'm good at sneaking around. Just leave it to me.

Lauren looked up, and saw hundeds of owls flutter in through the windows just like the night before. Charli landed in front of her, pecked at some granola on the table, and flew off. Today, Lauren only had two letters and one package. The first letter was from Lily.

_Dear Lauren, _

_Wow, I didn't think you'd be a Slytherin. And I especially didn't think Albus would either. It's cool I guess, but I like Gryffindor better. Is your room at least nice? Also, I borrowed to Charli to send a letter to Hugo. I hope that's okay, since he's only a 6 minutes flight from our house. I'm going to Diagon Alley with mum tomorrow. Do you want anything? I feel bad, because I remember how much you loved shopping. You won't be able to go on the Hogsmead trips until your third year. James told me that he snuck out to Hogsmead with his cloak once last year, but I don't believe it. It's really unfair though that he gets an invisibility cloak, Albus gets a magical map, and I get nothing. Mum says I should stop writing before I start to bore you, so I will. Please write back._

_Love,_

_Lily_

The next letter was from Ginny.

_Dear Lauren,_

_I'm so happy to hear that you and Albus ended up together. We've never had anyone in our family in Slytherin before, which makes you two the first! Harry brought your letter for your parents to the mailing place(I don't know what muggles call them), since Charli can't make an overseas trip. He said it should take a few days to get a response from them. I also sent you a package that arrived for you. I suspect it's a gift from your mum. Let me know if you need anything. _

_Sending all my love,_

_Aunt Ginny_

Lauren turned to the package. It was around the size of three tissue boxes stacked on top of each other. A few months ago, she would've flaunted the gift and made sure everyone watched her open it. Now, she felt awkward receiving presents when most of the kids around her just received small things that they'd left at home.

"What's in the box?" asked Andromeda.

"Nothing," replied Lauren as she quickly pushed it into her bag.

Thankfully, she didn't have to worry about making up an excuse because all around them students stood up as the food disappeared off the tables. As everyone headed to their first class, the Slytherin's looked at their schedule.

"Astronomy with Hufflepuff," read Dominic. The other students sighed, but Lauren felt a slight bit of excitement knowing that Louis would be there.

The class ended up being anything but fun. The teacher was a woman named Professor Pottlewedst who had an annoying habit of tapping her long nails on everything. She liked to throw random questions around and catch kids off guard. To top things off, she told the class that they would have to be there at midnight tomorrow to analyze Mercury's movement out of retrograde.

The students went to their next class, which was Herbology with Gryffindor. While everyone hoped they would get to plant flowers, they ended up sitting in a smelly greenhouse while their teacher, Professor Longbottom, lectured them about the importance of gloves and safety goggles. As they stood up to leave, Rose knocked over an empty pot and yelled,

"Lauren!" Everyone stared, but thankfully Professor Longbottom didn't seem to mind.

"No worries!" he said as he cast a spell to clean up the shattered pieces. "I've knocked over plenty of stuff in here, even when I was a student. You've got nothing to worry about my dear!" If anything, the incident seemed to make the professor like Lauren even more.

"Why didn't you stick up for yourself in there?" asked Celine as they made their way towards History of Magic.

"Yeah, we all would've backed you up," added Titus.

"The last thing I want is more drama with her. I didn't get in any trouble, so what would be the point of arguing anyways?"

History of Magic was even worse then yesterday's class. However, the students came up with a system to would allow them to pass notes to each other without getting caught. Lauren tried to catch Louis's eye again, but it was no use. Then she realized why he wouldn't look at her. She had promised to talk to him at dinner the night before, but was to caught up in her conversations to do just that. She felt her heart swell as guilt filled her chest. She got a second chance with him and she blew it.

At least lunch was better. She wrote letters back to her aunt and Lily while she ate.

_Dear Lily,_

_Albus and I are really enjoying Slytherin! My room is pretty nice and so are the girls I share it with. And you can borrow Charli anytime you'd like! Could you send me some more of the glow-in-the-dark bubble gum while you're at Diagon Alley? Thanks. _

_Love you!_

_-Lauren _

_Dear Aunt Ginny,_

_I asked Lily if you two could pick me up some more glow-in-the-dark bubble gum if that's ok? Also, if my mom sends anymore packages to the house, you can give them to Lily. I don't need them. Tell Uncle Harry I said thanks for making sure my letters get to my parents though. See you soon!_

_Love,_

_Lauren_

Lauren sealed her letters and got ready to bring them up to the owlery when she remembered the package that she'd received that morning. She kept it in her bag as she opened it. Inside was a new top and a pair of vans. She pulled the package out and slipped it into Andromeda's bag when no one was looking. She heard footsteps pounding behind her, and saw Celine running torwards the group at full speed.

"Guys! I've got it! I figured out how to change the password!"

**Sorry for such a long update time:( I'm going to try and have the next chapter up within a week though. As always, make sure to follow/favorite/review:)**


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